Joseph Francis Tolbert (July 27, 1912 – January 10, 1984), better known as Frank X. Tolbert, was an American journalist, historian, and chili enthusiast from

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

. For the ''

Dallas Morning News ''The Dallas Morning News'' is a daily newspaper serving the Dallas–Fort Worth area of Texas, with an average print circulation in 2022 of 65,369. It was founded on October 1, 1885, by Alfred Horatio Belo as a satellite publication of the ' ...

'', he wrote a local history column called ''Tolbert's Texas'' that ran from 1946 until his death in 1984.

Biography

Tolbert was born in Amarillo, and was raised in

Wichita Falls Wichita Falls ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Wichita County, Texas, United States. It is the principal city of the Wichita Falls metropolitan statistical area, which encompasses all of Archer, Clay, and Wichita Counties. According to ...

and

Canyon A canyon (; archaic British English spelling: ''cañon''), gorge or chasm, is a deep cleft between escarpments or cliffs resulting from weathering and the erosive activity of a river over geologic time scales. Rivers have a natural tendency t ...

. He attended various colleges, but never received a degree. He worked as a

sports writer Sports journalism is a form of writing that reports on matters pertaining to sporting topics and competitions. Sports journalism has its roots in coverage of horse racing and boxing in the early 1800s, mainly targeted towards elites, and into t ...

for the ''

Lubbock Avalanche-Journal ''Lubbock Avalanche-Journal'' is a newspaper based in Lubbock, Texas, United States. It is owned by Gannett. History ''The Lubbock Avalanche'' was founded in 1900 by John James Dillard and Thad Tubbs. According to Dillard, the name "Avalanche" ...

'', the '' Wichita Falls Times Record News'', and the ''

Fort Worth Star-Telegram The ''Fort Worth Star-Telegram'' is an American daily newspaper serving Fort Worth and Tarrant County, the western half of the North Texas area known as the Metroplex. It is owned by The McClatchy Company. History In May 1905, Amon G. Car ...

''. He also wrote articles that were published in ''

Leatherneck Magazine ''Leatherneck Magazine of the Marines'' (or simply ''Leatherneck'') is a magazine for United States Marines. History and profile The first ''Leatherneck'' was published Nov. 17, 1917, as a four-page newspaper. It was called ''The Quantico Leat ...

'', ''

Collier's } ''Collier's'' was an American general interest magazine founded in 1888 by Peter F. Collier, Peter Fenelon Collier. It was launched as ''Collier's Once a Week'', then renamed in 1895 as ''Collier's Weekly: An Illustrated Journal'', shortened i ...

'', ''Esquire'', and the ''

Saturday Evening Post ''The Saturday Evening Post'' is an American magazine published six times a year. It was published weekly from 1897 until 1963, and then every other week until 1969. From the 1920s to the 1960s, it was one of the most widely circulated and influ ...

''. He served in the

U.S. Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionary ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, and married Kathleen Hoover in December 1943. In 1946 he joined the ''Dallas Morning News'', and became a regular columnist on Texas topics, including colorful Texas people from all walks of life. He was also a food connoisseur, wrote a history of

chili con carne Chili con carne ( ), often shortened to chili, is a spicy stew of Mexican origin containing chili peppers (sometimes in the form of chili powder), meat (usually beef), tomatoes, and often pinto beans or kidney beans. Other seasonings may includ ...

called ''A Bowl of Red'', and ran a chili restaurant in

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

called Tolbert's. In 1967 he founded, with Wick Fowler, the World Chili Championship held annually in

Terlingua, Texas Terlingua ( ) is a mining district and census-designated place (CDP) in southwestern Brewster County, Texas, United States. It is located near the Rio Grande and the villages of Lajitas and Study Butte, Texas, as well as the Mexican st ...

, which was later named for them. He appeared in several television commercials for Dennison's canned chili during the late 1970s. He died of heart failure at age 71. His son, Frank X. Tolbert II, is an artist and chili chef. His daughter, Kathleen Tolbert Ryan, re-opened a Tolbert's Restaurant in May 2006 on Main Street in

Grapevine, Texas Grapevine is a city located in northeast Tarrant County, Texas, United States, with minor portions extending into Dallas County, Texas, Dallas and Denton County, Texas, Denton counties. Its population was 50,631 in the 2020 United States Census, ...

. Tolbert's Restaurant serves Frank X. Tolbert's famous chili recipe and has been named one of the "52 things Every Dallasite Must Do" by ''

D Magazine ''D Magazine'' is a monthly magazine covering Dallas–Fort Worth. It is headquartered in Downtown Dallas. ''D Magazine'' covers a range of topics including politics, business, food, fashion and lifestyle in the city of Dallas. The first issue ...

'' as well as one of the best chili spots in America by ''

Bon Appétit ''Bon Appétit'' is a monthly American food and entertaining magazine, that typically contains recipes, entertaining ideas, restaurant recommendations, and wine reviews. Owned by Condé Nast, it is headquartered at the One World Trade Center ...

'' magazine.

Books

Fiction

* ''Bigamy Jones'' (1954) * ''The Staked Plain'' (1958) with Tom Pilkington, 1987,

Southern Methodist University Press Southern Methodist University Press (or SMU Press) was a university press that is part of Southern Methodist University. It was established in 1937 and released eight to ten titles each year and was known for its literary fiction. It was schedul ...

reprint, .

Non-fiction

* ''An Informal History of Texas'' (1951) * ''Neiman-Marcus, Texas'' (1953) * ''The Day of San Jacinto'' (1959) Jenkins Publishing. * ''Dick Dowling at Sabine Pass'' (1962) * ''A Bowl of Red'' (1972)

Doubleday Doubleday may refer to: * Doubleday (surname), including a list of people with the name Publishing imprints * Doubleday (publisher), imprint of Knopf Doubleday, a subsidiary of Penguin Random House * Doubleday Canada, imprint of Penguin Random ...

, . * ''Tolbert's Texas'' (1983) Doubleday, , . * ''Tolbert of Texas: the Man and His Work'' (1986) ed. by Evelyn Oppenheimer, TCU Press, , .

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tolbert, Frank X Journalists from Texas 1912 births 1984 deaths United States Marines United States Marine Corps personnel of World War II People from Amarillo, Texas Chefs from Texas American chefs 20th-century American historians American male non-fiction writers 20th-century American journalists American male journalists Historians from Texas 20th-century American male writers